Chocolate Nutella Cake

Nutella Chocolate Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and grease and line a 9-inch round baking pan.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add butter and milk and stir until melted. Remove from heat and stir in Nutella, and cocoa powder until smooth. Add brown sugar, salt, and vanilla and stir until well combined. Add eggs (or apple sauce and vegan mayo) and stir until smooth. Sift in the flour and baking soda and whisk until all the flour is just combined.
3. Pour into the prepared baking pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan before decorating, this should take about 2-3 hours.

Nutella Swiss Meringue Buttercream 

1. Add egg whites (or aquafaba), sugar, cream of tartar, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer. If using aquafaba, skip step 2.
2. If using egg white, set up a double boiler and place the bowl over a pot of simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Stir for 5 minutes or until the mixture hits 160°F. Then remove from the heat.
3. Attach the bowl to the mixer and whisk for 12 minutes. Add butter a tablespoon at a time, mixing well in between each addition.  Add powdered sugar, Nutella, and vanilla. Scrape down the bowl and whisk well. If it’s soupy or loose- pop the bowl in the fridge for 15 minutes and then continue whisking. It should be creamy, smooth, and light.

Assemble

1. Dollop the frosting into the center of the cooled cake and use a spatula to spread the frosting into an even layer on top. Decorate with chopped hazelnuts and enjoy!